McGonigle strikes again as Limavady beat Cliftonville

Irish Premiership Limavady United 1 - 0 Cliftonville FT Jamie McGonigle's fifth goal in three games was enough to secure a third win of the season for Limavady United as edged out Cliftonville at the Showgrounds. The experienced frontman has been a revelation for the Roesiders since joining on loan from Coleraine before the transfer window shut at the start of the month. McGonigle took advantage of a poor clearance by PJ Morrison to fire the hosts in front, but he could have had more as the Roesiders dominated the opening 45 minutes. The Reds mustered a response after the break and ramped up the pressure in the closing stages with Dean McMaster going closest to an equaliser, but it wasn't to come as Jim Magilton's side slipped to a third defeat in-a-row Limavady continue their fine form It was a fairly low-key opening quarter of an hour with Brian Healy's wayward effort from Rory Hale's pullback the closest either side came to threatening a goal. Limavady United started to find their feet with the lively McGonigle causing problems on the counterattack. After winning a corner on a break forward, Ruairi Boorman clipped the side netting from Danny Lafferty's inswinging delivery. McGonigle then dragged an effort across the face of goal from a Philip Lowry threaded pass on 18 minutes as the hosts continued to threaten. Within a minute, the Coleraine loanee fired his side in front after Alfie Gaston forced Morrison into a poor clearance with McGonigle firing the ball over the keeper's head and into the net from 20 yards. The Roesiders were full of confidence and were inches away from a second 10 minutes before the break as Gaston fizzed a low shot narrowly wide of the near post. McGonigle then clipped the top of the crossbar with an audacious effort from out of the right-hand side on 38 minutes before Morrison palmed away a Ruairi Boorman header as the Roesiders came agonisingly close to a second goal before the break. The 30-year-old continued to ask the questions after the break as he forced another good save out of Morrison on 56 minutes after a great turn in the box created the space for the striker to get his shot away. Jim Magilton introduced Ben Quinn and Keevan Hawthorne in a bid to inject some attacking threat into his side and it almost had an instant reaction as teenage forward Hawthorne forced Marty Gallagher into his first meaningful action in the Limavady goal. Gallagher was called into action again as we moved into the final 20 minutes. This time Dean McMaster let fly from 25-yards out with the Limavady stopper grabbing the ball at the second attempt after initially parrying the first shot. McMaster tested Gallagher with another effort from outside the box on 80 minutes as the Reds continue to increase the pressure in search of an equaliser. McClelland then looped a header onto the Roesiders crossbar from a Quinn corner with the defender having one more chance before the end, but his header was scooped up by Gallagher, much to the delight of the home support.